MyAppleMenu

Saturday, November 30, 2002

Opinion

PPC Linux: Becoming A Third Class Citizenby chromatic, O'Reilly NetworkAfter four years of running Linux on my desktop, I'm used to being treated like a second-class citizen. Now that I'm on a different platform, I'm even lower on the ladder.

Wintel

Microsoft Antitrust Ruling Faces Appealby Joe Wilcox, CNET News.comMassachusetts officials said Friday they will appeal a recent ruling in Microsoft's long-running antitrust case, while seven other states intend to drop their opposition.

Friday, November 29, 2002

Top Stories

That Finder Thingby John Gruber, Daring FireballUI design decisions at Apple are now in the hands of people who do not understand good UI design. What makes it sad is not just that Appleís standards used to be so much higher, but that there are still so many talented designers working there.

News

Apple Turns Sour On Local Telco Tyro In Logo Zoneby Luke Mcllveen, News.com.auUS-based Apple Computers was adamant that Daniel Cheng's Sydney-based Apple Communications was stealing its custom adn ordere him to change his company name and pay $100,000 in "compensation".

Thursday, November 28, 2002

Top Stories

News

Apple Links Up With MP3.comby NetimperativeThe Apple Store has selected MP3.com Europe as the main focus of its online marketing drive to encourage sales of the Apple iPod.

Laptops Plan For City Pupilsby Jason Cumming, Edinburgh Evening NewsSchool chiefs in Edinburgh are set to adopt a United States-style scheme to provide a laptop computer for every pupil over nine after being "inspired" by an overseas field trip.

Granada Are Wild About Macsby Apple"It's a joy to watch these edits as they take shape on the 22-inch Cinema Displays, rather than trying to guess what they are going to look like when they are finally rendered up."

Apple In Xmas Packs Offerby Macworld UKThe offer comprises four packs - Starter, Mobility, Photo, and Creative - each of which is designed to cater to specific needs.

Opinion

Wintel

Server Market Stabilises (But Competition Is Fierce)by ComputerWireThe server market is stabilizing after two years of decline research firm IDC declared yesterday. However, competition remains fierce, with Unix-based machines losing ground to Linux and Windows-based boxes and Dell Computer the only company to increase revenues.

Wednesday, November 27, 2002

Top Stories

Why Security Flaws Need To Come Out Into The Openby Robert Vamosi, CNETWhile announcing vulnerabilities publicly can increase the likelihood of new malicious attacks, the fact that large software companies can't or won't fix flaws that are reported to them is a more serious problem. Sometimes, the only way to make a company respond responsibly is to make the vulnerability information public.

Review

An Apple A Dayby Garry Barker, Sydney Morning HeraldIf you happen to be flying by the chimney of the ancestral manse this coming Christmas morn, what about dropping off one of those new 1GHz Titanium PowerBooks?

Wintel

New Itanium To Reach 1.5GHzby Tom Krazit, InfoWorldIntel will reveal details about its third-generation Itanium server processor, which will offer a 1.5GHz clock speed, at a conference sponsored by the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE).

Tuesday, November 26, 2002

News

Maya 4.5 Personal Learning Edition Coming In Decby Peter Cohen, MacCentralMaya 4.5 Personal Learning Edition is a limited but free version of the Maya software, used extensively for 3D modeling and animation in television, advertising and film.

Blueprint For An Apple Xserve Rolloutby Robyn Weisman, NewsFactorGartner analyst Tony Adams said a strong selling point is the tightly coupled integration between the Xserve's OS and its hardware platform.

The Man Behind The Curtain: Ph.D. Student Rings Bellsby Sabrina Peric, The DartmouthThere are few things that are as constant in a Dartmouth student's life as the ringing of Baker Tower's bells. Whether it be "You Are My Sunshine" or the alma mater, Dartmouth students can count on hearing those bells every day.

Opinion

iPhoto Needs iMarketingby Philip Machanick, MacOPINIONApple does not advertise its advantages well enough in the rest of the world.

Apple's Twisted Upgrade Routeby James Mathewson, ComputerUserOur company will buy no new Macs in 2003 because many applications are not ready for OS X.

Review

Sexy New iMac Sets The Pace - Againby Alistair Cotton, iAfricaThere is probably not a machine out there, at any price, which offers the kind of benefits, rock-solid performance and zany appeal than the new iMac. Even Office looks good on this Mac.

An OS X Office Suite To Suitby Graham K. Rogers, Bangkok PostThere is now a choice of office software for the latest Mac OS, but capabilities and prices vary widely.

A Mac User's Guide To The Unix Command Line, Part 1by Kirk McElheam, TidBITSUnix is reputed to be complex — its cryptic commands are said to offer a steep learning curve and not be accessible to "the rest of us." While this can be true — some Unix commands are like a foreign language — the command line can also be simple, useful, and powerful.

Wintel

Microsoft Targets Defectors With Discountsby Joe Wilcox, CNET News.comMicrosoft said it plans to offer smaller companies a more lenient licensing plan intended to stem defections to Linux or other open-source software.

Monday, November 25, 2002

Top Stories

Picking Apples At Ikea Singaporeby Irene Tham, CNETAsiaJimmy Fong is out to make a splash. His aim? To get his five-month-old computer retail shop in Singapore recognized in a market ruled by Microsoft and discount PCs.

Macromedia Introduces Director MXby MacNNThe $1200 authoring application adds a number of new features as well, including the new MX interface, QuickTime 6 compatibility, better integration with other MX applications, and the ability to create content for those with (some) disabilities.

Why Apple's Bite Remains Smallby Roseanne Gerin, Warsaw Business JournalThe American computer makerís PCs and notebooks are far out of reach for most cost-conscious Poles who shop at the nationwide network of 16 high-tech self-service retail stores.

Apple's Quirky Ads Evoke Paraodies Of Themselvesby John Schwartz, New York TimesThe current campaign, with Macintosh users talking of why they switched from the Microsoft Windows world to Apple products, has received so much attention that imitations and parodies are showing up across the Web.

Opinion

A New Kind Of Productivity Applicationby Tim O'Reilly, O'Reilly NetworkFor years, we've let office productivity applications define "productivity," yet Apple knows that the new frontier of productivity is not a new spreadsheet, word processor, or email client, but rather, tools for managing a consumer's growing array of digital assets: photos, music, and videos.

Don't Pass The Buck, Macby Charles Wright, Sydney Morning HeraldWe think it would benefit the company's culture immensely were Apple to accept responsibility for the problem and stop trying to pass the buck to Telstra.

Review

Number Of Ways To Use Math Gameby Joseph Szadkowski, Washington TimesIn a world of violent video games, there must be a place for children and their parents to interact and actually learn something from that overpriced multimedia computer/gaming system.

Wintel

Could Dell Services Push Get Too Pushy?by Dawn Kawamoto, CNET News.comDell Computer's increasing focus on corporate services has led to prominent contracts and growing revenue for both the PC maker and its partners that help provide the services. But executives and analysts say conflicts with those partners could be looming.

Microsoft And AOL Neck-And-Neck In Nielsensby ComputerWireAccording to Nielsen, in October Microsoft-owned brands had a unique audience of 92.619 million, compared to 92.608 million from AOL-owned brands. The statistics are extrapolated from Nielsen's panels of volunteers at home and work.

Sunday, November 24, 2002

Top Stories

How The Leopard Got His Spotsby Oliver Masciarotte, MixApple's point-two version of OS X has more than 100 improvements, and many of them translate into more joy for the audio practitioner.

News

New Store At Plaza Aims To Up Visibilityby Carl Rotenberg, Times HeraldThe spiffy new Apple store on the lower level of the Plaza at King of Prussia is loaded with Macintosh computers and accessories to tempt the wallets of holiday shoppers.

Opinion

Apple And The Priate Everymanby Plasticbag.orgApple is one hundred percent ahead of the game here — so far ahead, in fact — that it's completely unable to say it loud and clear.

Dear Santa Macintoshby Simon St. Laurent, O'Reilly NetworkThe size and weight of the iBook are fine with me, but I want less.

Review

Apple's Expansive iMacby Al Griffin, Sound & VisionMy first thought was that it would make a great all-purpose computer/entertainment center for a college student in a dorm room. On second thought, almost anyone would be thrilled to own this remarkable machine.

Controlling iTunes With Perlby brian d foy, O'Reilly NetworkOnce I have a back end, I can create almost any interface to iTunes that I like, and I do.

Apple eMacby Michael Tedeschi, Washington PostThe eMac is a good little computer overall. Is it enough to make a lifelong Windows user replace his PC? No, but it will have me cursing my own Windows box more often.

Wintel

Microsofterby Steve Bodow, New York TimesThe software giant has emerged from its antitrust quagmire, and it has a new product to pitch. Might its reversal of fortune have something to do with Steve Ballmer's re-engineered personality?

Opinion

Imagine That - Learning Made Funby Michael McGuire, The Courier-GazetteI continue to be a staunch supporter of Maine's trailblazing laptop program. I think it is the most forward-looking education initiative of the last 25 years. It's going to make a huge, positive difference - unlike the so-called Learning Results mandates that I believe are mostly doomed to uselessness.

Wintel

About Tablet Computing Old And Newby Dan BricklinA discussion of PC tablet hardware and software from the 1990's, and why Microsoft's pushing of the new Tablet PCs will bring renewed innovation.

Microsoft Oversight Committee Takes Shapeby Joris Evers, InfoWorldA Three-person technical committee that will enforce Microsoft's compliance with the antitrust settlement approved earlier this month is taking shape with the proposal of two members by Microsoft and the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ).

Microsoft: Xbox Live Is Living Largeby David Becker, CNET News.comMicrosoft announced Friday that it has nearly sold out of its initial shipment of 150,000 starter kits for Xbox Live, the new online service for its video game console.

AOL Tests Standalone E-Mail Productby Jim Hu, CNET News.comAmerica Online is testing a standalone e-mail client that could set the stage for a features battle with Microsoft in the market for Internet-based communications software.

Friday, November 22, 2002

Top Stories

Apple 'It' Girl Breaks Silenceby Leander Kahney, Wired NewsEllen Feiss, whose fame continues to grow even as she eschews the media spotlight, has finally granted her first sitdown with a reporter, albeit from an unlikely publication.

News

Apple Drops In Microsoft Countryby Manny Frishberg, Wired NewsApple must really want to get in Microsoft's face. That could be one reason Apple plans to open the first branded retail store north of San Francisco in the upscale Bellevue Square Mall, less than two miles from Bill Gates' Medina, Washington, mansion.

Mac Attack Headed For Ala Moanaby Russ Lynch, Honolulu StarApple is running advertisements on its Web site, www.apple.com, seeking applicants for a store manager and assistant manager for a new Ala Moana store.

Opinion

Does Apple Need To Upgrade The Original iMac?by Remy Davison, Insanely Great MacIf Apple really wants to keep the iMac pitched at schools as an budget-priced, entry level Mac, it doesn't need to upgrade the spec; it needs to practically give them away.

Apple Of Your iMacby Neil McIntosh, The GuardianIf trade show crowds are anything to go by, then the scrum at this year's UK MacExpo, continuing in London today, shows the Mac market to be in good health.

Sidetrack

Wintel

Microsoft Talking Big For Serversby Stephen Shankland, CNET News.comFor years, Microsoft has argued that servers containing only a handful of processors are good enough for most of the world. But now, with the advent of huge Intel machines and the approaching release of a new version of Windows that will run on them, the company is changing its tune.

One Licence For MS Jupiter Appsby ComputerWireMicrosoft plans to introduce a single licence for its Jupiter suite of integrated e-business components that will eventually replace the existing Content Management Server 2002, Commerce Server 2002, and BizTalk Server 2002 products.

Thursday, November 21, 2002

Top Stories

Maine Laptops: IT Takes A Villageby Katie Dean, Wired NewsThe enormous undertaking hasn't been easy. But recent visits to a handful of Maine schools show that with the right mix of time, resources and community support, the laptop investment pays big dividends.

Wozniak To Step Onto The Mac Stageby Dawn Kawamoto, CNET News.comApple Computer co-founder Steve Wozniak is taking the stage at Macworld Expo after a six-year absence and will be giving his first presentation there in more than a decade.

Apple Delays Xserve Storage Unitby Ian Fried, CNET News.comThe Xserve RAID, which Apple had promised to deliver by the end of this year, will not make the deadline, according to a posting on Apple's Web site.

Point And Flickby Garry Barker, The AgeWe must concede that the update covers huge ground and is worth the time and trouble but not the money.

Boxing The Genome Codeby Garry Barker, The AgeWhile a couple of million people now carry the little white box with the tuning wheel to provide music wherever they go, Dr Will Gilbert, one of the leading technologists in the genetics industry in the US, uses his iPod to carry the entire human genome wherever he goes.

Xpowerhosting Uses Xserves Exclusivelyby Peter Cohen, MacCentralXpowerhosting.com is a new Internet hosting service provider that hopes to make a mark with Macintosh enthusiasts as one of the first Web hosting companies to use Apple's Xserve exclusively.

Weathering The 'Switch'by David Zeiler, Baltimore SunFive months after Apple began its $117 million advertising campaign, here's how some switchers view the change.

Opinion

Crossplatform Conundrumby Jeff Lewis, MacOPINIONWhen you put all the rumors together, the conclusion seems to point to a PDA.

The Fruit Of Apple's Labourby Azeem Azhar, The GuardianApple is far from dead or dying. The existing customer-base is loyal. And it is sending an attractive message to new ones. More importantly, it proves that Apple is still relevant. Relevance isn't something that appears on a balance sheet. But it is a lodestone that attracts developer excitement and market buzz. Relevant firms rarely die. Far from it, they flourish.

Review

Quick Review Of 1GHz PowerBook G4by Juha Haataja, Universal RuleThe PowerBook could be a replacement for a desktop machine. You should investigate the ergonomics of the system before taking the plunge and removing your desktop system. A separate display, a mouse, and an external keyboard may become essential accessories, if you are planning to replace your desktop with a portable.

iBook 12.1in Comboby Mike Hirsckorn, MacUserWe hope that the current iBooks will be the last Macs to use the aging G3 processor. However, the new iBooks are as good as ever, and at their new low prices, we can't think of a reason not to get one.

Macworld Announces Best Of Show Awardsby Macworld UKMacworld today announced the winners of the ìMacworld Best of Show Awardsî, representing the most exciting hardware and software products announced at MacExpo 2002 in London.

Wintel

Microsoft Says: Don't Trust Microsoftby Glenn Vanderburg, O'Reilly NetworkIt's tempting to just chortle at this, but it illustrates serious problems with the code-signing approach in general.

.Net Remains Point Of Contentionby Matt Berger, InfoWorldMicrosoft's planned release of the Windows .Net Server 2003 operating system drew cheers and jeers here at the Comdex trade show, where a panel of developers and technology experts faced off in a debate over Microsoft's emerging Web-based development platform.

Microsoft Innovates With A Vengeanceby David Kirkpatrick, FortuneIn his keynote address to the Comdex computer trade show Monday night, Microsoft's Bill Gates demonstrated several things: that innovation really does still flourish in technology; that to call the IT industry "mature" is foolish; that, for better or worse, one company remains the undisputed flag-bearer for the entire technology industry; and that flag-bearing Microsoft still considers itself to be in the starting phases of the process of changing the world.

Wednesday, November 20, 2002

News

WMP Only Works Under Internet Explorerby MacNNInternet Explorer is the only browser designed to work with Windows Media Player Plugin, leaving users of Chimera and other browsers in the dark.

Adobe Sued Over Photoshop 7 Featureby MacMinuteShell and Slate Software and Ben Weiss have filed suit against Adobe on "numerous allegations, including misappropriation of trade secrets and breach of contract concerning the Healing Brush texture-cloning tool included in Adobe Photoshop 7.0."

Apple To Open Emeryville Store Nov 23by San Francisco Business TimesApple is opening its 50th Apple retail store in Emeryville Nov. 23 at 10 a.m. at the new Bay Street commercial development.

PCs, Gadgets Scrap For Home Dominanceby Ian Fried, CNET News.comThe home computer, tired of being relegated to the office, is trying to put on new clothes so that it can hang out with the television, the set-top box and the DVD player. Meanwhile, those gadgets are also trying to grab more leverage in the home, adding new abilities to record and edit the images and videos they're playing.

Comdex: Apple's Schiller, Microsoft Talk On Digital Hubby David Schloss, MacCentralPanelists and moderator alike agreed that the future of the digital home is only starting to take shape, with changes in technologies over the next few years allowing for a level of connectedness and simplicity that isn't possible ... yet.

iCal 1.0: Free But Flawed: App Needs Some Workby Christopher Breen, MacworldiCal is a promising — if wobbly — first step. If you demand little from a calendar application or find iCal's integration with other OS X applications and .Mac enticing, download iCal with our blessing. We, on the other hand, will stick with free competitors such as Palm Desktop until we see what iCal 2.0 holds in store.

Mac Chronicles: Smile For iPhotoby Dwayne R. Brown, CanadaComputes.comDigital photography has hit the mainstream in a big way over the past year, but taking the picture is only half the battle. What to do with the image file is where Mac steps in.

Wintel

Flaw Leaves IE Open To Attackby Dennis Fisher, eWeekThe flaw lies in the Microsoft Data Access Components, a collection of components used to provide database connectivity on Windows.

Microsoft Spills Customer Databy Brian McWilliams, Wired NewsMicrosoft took a public file server offline Tuesday after Internet users discovered that the system contained scores of internal Microsoft documents, including a huge customer database with millions of entries.

Tuesday, November 19, 2002

Top Stories

Apple's 17-Inch iMacby Joe Wilcox, BetaNewsThis difference in the monitor is an important commentary on how Macs are different from PCs and why many Mac users are so fanatically faithful to Apple: Attention to detail.

Macworld Expo Conferences Expandedby Peter Cohen, MacCentralIDG World Expo has announced that the upcoming Macworld Conference & Expo in San Francisco, Calif. will feature an expanded array of Power Tools Conferences, and the San Francisco debut of the Hands-on MacLabs.

Blank DVD Discs Sales Picking Upby Video Store MagazineThe dominance of the DVD-R format is driven largely by the popularity of DVD recording in the Macintosh market as Apple emerged as an early supporter for the DVD-R format.

Wintel

Xbox Live Not For Everyoneby David Becker, CNET News.comLast week's launch of Microsoft's new online service for its Xbox video game console created headaches for some customers, who reported not being able to use the service or their game machines.

Microsoft To Simplify Security Alertsby Joe Wilcox, CNET News.comMicrosoft plans to "create a less technical end-user security bulletin that we will host, while continuing to offer more technical alerts for technology professionals."

Microsoft Business Framework: The 10-Year Planby ComputerWireMicrosoft is in for the long haul as far as its business applications are concerned with a 10-year development plan and a new Microsoft Business Framework to support the basket of disparate applications offered under the Microsoft Business Solutions banner.

What's New In Visual C++ .NET 2003by Sam Gentile, O'Reilly NetworkThe Visual C++ .NET 2003 release (code-named Everett) that has been released to MSDN today is perhaps the most significant and exciting release of the product since Visual C++ 4.0.

Microsoft Reconsiders Licensing Plansby Peter Galli, eWeekMicrosoft Corp. is looking at new ways to make its relatively unpopular Licensing 6 and Software Assurance volume licensing agreements more beneficial to the customers most negatively impacted: small and medium-size businesses.

Microsoft Unleashedby Jeff Moad, eWeekBefore taking off the gloves and expanding even more aggressively, Ballmer and Microsoft have some work to do shoring up strained relationships with enterprise customers.

Comdex: Users Size Up New, Low-Cost PDAsby Matt Berger, InfoWorldA deluge of new PDAs running Microsoft's Pocket PC software and the Palm operating system made their debut Monday here at the Comdex trade show, promising to make available low-cost, feature-rich portable devices to consumers and business users.

.Net Server: Three Delays A Charm?by Joe Wilcox, CNET News.comMicrosoft has for the third time delayed the launch of its Windows .Net Server 2003 high-end operating system.

Monday, November 18, 2002

Top Stories

Online Casting Calls Snub Appleby Stefanie Olsen and Evan Hansen, CNET News.comLast week's slight from Hollywood is an embarrassing rebuff for Apple, which has positioned itself as the computer maker of choice for consumers hungry for digital media.

A Whole New Initiativeby Eric Fetters, Daily HeraldRenee Radcliff envisions a larger role for computers in the classroom in her new position with Apple Computer.

Apple At The NSBA T+L Conferenceby AppleApple demonstrated its commitment to helping students excel in a big way by showcasing Mac OS X, the new Curriculum Mobile Labs, and PowerSchool, and highlighting Henrico County Public School's (Virginia) one-to-one technology initiative.

Apple Xserve Server Hits The Spotby Marc Spiwak and Mario Morejon, CRNThe new Xserve server from Apple Computer is great news for resellers that specialize in networking the vendor's computers.

Laagan, Tikawali Styleby Sumit Bhattacharya, The Times Of IndiaAn Apple Macintosh computer, a digital movie camera and five young boys huddled in front. There's nothing striking about the scene, except that the boys are from a non-descript Haryana village, and they are working on what will be the third movie written, shot and edited entirely on their own.

Fetishists Really Love Their Macsby Leander Kahney, Wired NewsSome Apple devotees take their love for all things Mac farther than others. In one case, a man fell in love with his PowerMac G3.

Businesses, Big And Small, Bet On Wireless Internet Accessby John Markoff, New York TimesThe next industry cycle may revolve around a wireless data technology known as Wi-Fi, which has the potential to eventually let anyone with a computer or computing device connect to the Internet at high speeds, without cables.

Opinion

Waiting For The Mac Tabletby Matthew Rothenberg, eWeekThe Mac maker isn't talking yet, but I predict it will have plenty to say about Microsoft's new portable-computing initiative next year—if the pen-driven slate takes hold in the market.

Review

Adobe InDesign 2by Lisa Swanson, macDVonlineThe days of Quarkís arrogance are over. Adobe has come to town to slay the beast, and itís armed with the right tools.

Ballmer: Tablets Will Erase Laptopsby Ian Fried and Stephen Shankland, ZDNetAlthough tablet PCs represent just a sliver of the PC market today, Microsoft Chief Executive Steve Ballmer says the new category could eventually account for one-third of all computers—by supplanting the laptop.

Gates Proposes Web-Enabled Alarm Clocksby Mark Hachman, ExtremeTechDo you need a Web-enabled alarm clock that can tell you traffic conditions, too? What about the luxury of carrying the Web into other parts of the house, rather than walking to and sitting down at a desk? If you answered "yes" to either question, you're just what Microsoftóand the tech industryóneeds.

Apple's New Net-Based Appsby Jay Greenspan, WebmonkeyYes the technologies we looked at in this article were all created by Apple. But now developers from outside companies will be able to integrate Internet data in their applications on the Mac platform.

Wintel

Japan Mulls Abandoning Microsoft Windowsby Eastday.comThe Japanese government may no longer use Microsoft Corp's Windows operating system as part of its plans to boost computer security within the government, Kyodo News reported today.

Xbox Launches Online Playby Tom Ham, Washington PostPeople have been playing video games in their living rooms for decades, but only this year did it become easy to play against people in other living rooms.

Living With The World's Fastest Macby Gene Steinberg, Gannett News ServiceThe fastest Power Macintosh of the season is truly an exemplary performer. In some respects, it beats the pants off the fastest available Pentium 4, and offers just about the best gaming performance I've ever seen on the Mac platform.

News

Bellevue Firm Eases The Move To A Macby Glenn Fleishman, Seattle TimesFor $59.95, the package includes software for both platforms that allows a relatively painless transition of files using a special USB cable to connect two machines.

Bay Street Opening Delayed Againby East Bay Business TimesLast week's stormy weather has pushed the debut of the Bay Street mixed-use development in Emeryville until Nov. 20.

Apple Updates iDisk Utilityby Dennis Sellers, MacCentralThe iDisk Utility is designed to simplify the use of the Public folder on your iDisk as a password-protected drop box for sharing files with clients, family, and friends.

Opinion

Rants & Raves: Students Treat Laptops With TLCby Benjamin Brewer, Wired NewsWhat's the point of giving a powerful device to a student, that is to allow them to seek information and be more innovative, and then sabotaging it so the machine can do one-fourth of what it's capable of?

Wintel

Microsoft Discloses Its Winners, Losersby Joseph Menn, Los Angeles TimesMicrosoft Corp. for the first time is providing details on how much money its individual products are earning — and losing.

EU Looking At New Microsoft Antitrust Caseby Paul Meller, IDG News ServiceThe European Commission is considering a new antitrust case against Microsoft Corp. based on the suspicion that the software maker is trying to leverage its dominance of PC operating systems into the market for mobile phone software, according to people familiar with the regulator's activities.

Reappearing Inkby Steve Gillmor, InfoWorldInk is an idea processor. It provides a unique service, the ability to capture ideas in process and massage them into shape.

Microsoft Security Efforts Just The Beginningby Dennis Fisher, eWeekAfter a year of work on the Trustworthy Computing initiative, Microsoft Corp. executives say they are pleased with the progress the company has made thus far, but acknowledge that they've only just scratched the surface of what needs to be done.

Friday, November 15, 2002

Top Stories

Studnets Treat Laptops With TLCby Katie Dean, Wired NewsSome might find it hard to believe that 12-year-olds are mature enough to take care of their own laptops. Maine middle-schoolers are proving naysayers wrong.

News

Creativity Returns To Schoolsby Jennifer Hiller, Honolulu AdvertiserToday, what is known as the integrated arts approach is taking hold at schools across the state, driven by a combination of national issues, academic research and local concerns.

Apple Employs Third-Party Tools To Improve Planning Processby Jennifer Baljko, EBNWhen it came to developing a planning strategy for components and spare parts needed in its production process, Apple Computer Inc. concluded that a third-party approach would be required to sort through complex internal processes and handle a large volume of data integration.

Review

Journaling: What It Is, Who Needs Itby John C Welch, WorkingmacShould you use journaling? My usual answer to that type of question is, "If you're asking, the answer is most likely no."

Sidetrack

ON THE GUI FRONT : Robert Scoble noted that it is, again, becoming cool to own a Macintosh.

Linux copies Microsoft which copied Apple which copied Xeros. I guess when you copy UIs too much they get ugly.

SOMEDAY : When I retire, or strike it rich and can afford not to work, I plan on researching whether humans are programmed, in the first place, to live in high-concentration areas such as cities. If it turns out negative, that might explain quite a few things. :-)

Wintel

How Microsoft Can Get Out Of Its Open-Source Messby Charles Cooper, ZDNetYour best chance is to turn this into a debate over which approach offers better software and support to customers. A few years ago, that would have been a slam dunk for Microsoft. These days I'm no longer so sure.

Dell Smashes Revenue Recordsby John G. Spooner, ZDNetDell Computer on Thursday said that its performance in the third fiscal quarter was one for the company's record books.

Tablet PC: First Impressionsby Dan BricklinMuch as the press wants to call it a "pen" computer, it is a Tablet computer. You must understand that. The basis of the machine is that it is (or can be turned into) a tablet. The pen is secondary, and not always important.

Thursday, November 14, 2002

Top Stories

Teachers Mainely Happy With Techby Katie Dean, Wired NewsA recent trip to three Maine schools offered a glimpse of how attitudes about the program are shifting: Many teachers are now more enthusiastic than dubious.

Early Desktop Pics Ahead Of Timeby Leander Kahney, Wired NewsDecorating a computer's desktop with a photo of a pet, a kid or a trip to Florida is commonplace. But back in the early 1990s, a forward-looking designer transformed his Mac's dull gray desktop into an integrated work of cyberart.

On The Moveby The StarApple Computer Inc has appointed Tony Ho as vice-president of Asia Pacific reporting to John Brandon, Apple vice-president of the Americas and Asia Pacific.

Apple's WebObjects Greets Web Servicesby Ian Fried, ZDNetA new version of Apple Computer's Web application development software released on Tuesday aims to be more compatible with emerging Web services standards.

Review

Matlab 6.5: The Engineer's Best Friend Returns To The Macby Charles Seiter, MacworldMatlab 6.5 provides a much improved programming environment and state-of-the-art execution speed on all matrix math functions. It's one of the first technical programs delivered to the Mac in "we're Unix software, get used to it" mode, and it's generally an impressive success.

Mac Vs. PC III: Mac Slaughtered Againby Charlie White, Digital Video EditingEven though the Mac's dual G4 chips have been sped up to 1.25 GHz and offers faster DDR RAM, apparently this wasnít enough to keep up with the newest and fastest from Dell and Intel.

Wintel

Intel Server Sales To Outpace Rivalsby Stephen Shankland, CNET News.comIn 2003, sales of servers built on Intel processors will for the first time exceed sales of more customized Unix systems built on RISC processors, analyst firm Gartner Dataquest has predicted.

Bracing For MS Patent Suit Attackby Robert McMillan, Wired NewsThe open-source developer fears that, having settled its long-running antitrust suit, Microsoft will now become more aggressive in competing with open-source software. And for Samba — software that allows Windows machines to read files on Linux servers — as well as other open-source projects that compete with Microsoft's products, that may mean dealing with patent lawsuits.

HP's New iPaqs Aim High And Lowby Ian Fried, ZDNetHewlett-Packard plans on Monday to introduce two iPaqs: One the smallest, most affordable iPaq yet and the other a deluxe model with fingerprint recognition and two forms of wireless connectivity.

Using A Hard Drive To Show Films In Theatersby Amy Harmon, New York TimesAs the major Hollywood studios bicker with theater owners over who should pay for the digital equipment that allows films to remain free of dirt and scratches no matter how many times they are viewed, a luxury carmaker and the world's largest software company have stepped into the breach, casting themselves as the unlikely champions of independent digital cinema.

Wednesday, November 13, 2002

Top Stories

News

BareBones Releases BBEdit 7.0 With CVS Support And Moreby MacMinuteVersion 7.0 introduces a number of new features, including integrated support for CVS, the ability to easily configure multiple Web sites, powerful new Sort Lines and Process Duplicate plug-ins, rectangular selection support, ASP/VBScript syntax coloring support, and more.

Stephen King Lends Voice To Laptop Programby Associated PressStephen King is lending his voice of support to Maine's program to equip middle school students with laptop computers. And he's even holding out the prospect of teaching students online.

Microsoft's Next Challenge: Corporate IMby Jim Hu, Joe Wilcox and Evan Hansen, CNET News.comMicrosoft on Wednesday unveiled a new instant messaging service aimed at corporate customers, jump-starting belated efforts by the software giant to tap the fast-growing, new market for the hugely popular technology.

Start-Up To Carve Out Tablet Nicheby John G. Spooner, CNET News.comStepUp Computing, a start-up formed by former Emachines executives, is launching an inexpensive tablet computer.

Tuesday, November 12, 2002

Top Stories

Laptops Not Yet Maine-Streamby Katie Dean, Wired NewsIn rural Maine, seventh-graders have the same shiny new laptops as their coastal cousins. But with fewer resources and training, many teachers are learning to use the machines along with their students.

Apple Adds Drop-In Journaling To OS X Serverby Andrew Orlowski, The RegisterJournaling is a convenience feature for system administrators: it improves restart times after a crash on large volumes, as the system only needs to check the journal rather than every block on the disk.

News

Apple Web App Opens Doors To Othersby Ian Fried, CNET News.comThe new version of WebObjects, which is used by companies to create various custom Web applications, supports key standards such as XML (Extensible Markup Language) and SOAP (Simple Object Access Protocol), while not requiring developers to write the low-level code for those protocols.

Now Online: All Of Calif. Coastby Kendra Mayfield, Wired NewsEquipped with a digital camera, an Apple PowerBook and a Robinson R-44 helicopter, Kenneth Adelman and his wife are taking high-resolution pictures of every mile of the California coastline, 500 feet at a time.

'Finding Nemo' Games Coming To Mac In 2003by Peter Cohen, MacCentralPixar's next major animated motion picture "Finding Nemo" isn't coming to theaters until next year, but game publisher THQ Inc. has already announced plans to publish games based on the movie, including two titles for Macs and PCs.

Watson 1.6 Postedby Macworld UKIt introduces a number of improvements, including integration with iCal and Address Book, alongside support for EyeTV.

It's All About The OSby Richard K. Hallmark, Mac DesignWe must remember that Mac OS X wonít celebrate its second birthday until the end of March 2003. With what Iíve seen so far, I can only dream about what itíll be like when it reaches the ripe old age of 4 or 5.

Apple's New Mathby John Halbig, Mac Design"Now, a computer in every othe rroom isn't just for itinerant geeks (like me)."

Apple Tunes Up Notebook Linesby Matthew Rothenberg, PC MagazineAnyone who wonders why i like covering apple and the Mac should consider the frenzy of speculation leading up to last Wednesday's tweaks to the company's notebook lines.

Review

Links Championship Editionby Erica Marceau, Applelinks.comLinks Championship Edition is okay if you can't or don't want to afford playing on an actual golf course, but it is hardly a substitute for the real thing.

Gateway Profile 4 Vs Apple iMacby Joe Wilcox, BetaNewsFor many Mac buyers on a budget, the iMac is a great deal because of the monitor. A Power Mac would cost much more. But for those making a choice between an iMac or Profile 4 might consider a notebook if an all-in-one system is the preference. But a regular desktop would be cheaper still and offer more power for the buck.

Sidetrack

WHO'S INNOVATING NOW? Just when Microsoft is using the word "Innovation" in every sentence they utter about the tablet PC, here comes Business Week's article about Apple reclaiming the innovation lead.

RADIO MADNESS : There's TiVo for television — even though we still don't have anything like it here in Singapore — but where is TiVo for radio? Imagine the possibility if we have good speech and voice recognition...

RADIO MADNESS II : Looks to me a very nice alternative to Radio Userland is evolving...

Wintel

Ballmer: "Dedicated" To Court Settlementby Joe Wilcox, CNET News.comMicrosoft CEO Steve Ballmer said Tuesday that the software giant was "dedicated from the top down" to meeting settlement guidelines from a federal antitrust ruling against the company.Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer said Tuesday that the software giant was "dedicated from the top down" to meeting settlement guidelines from a federal antitrust ruling against the company.Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer said Tuesday that the software giant was "dedicated from the top down" to meeting settlement guidelines from a federal antitrust ruling against the company.

AMD To Tout Corporate Win At Comdexby John G Spooner, CNET News.comAdvanced Micro Devices, looking to find a niche in the business market, plans to announce a large corporate contract next week, according to company executives.

Microsoft To Stake $400 Million In Indiaby Winston Chai, CNET News.comThe software giant plans to spend $400 million over the next three years to boost its presence in India, Microsoft Chairman Bill Gates revealed today.

Oracle Sends An E-Mail Pitchby Alorie Gilbert, ZDNetOracle urged thousands of IT managers at its annual conference to ditch Microsoft and IBM e-mail systems in favor of Oracle's Collaboration Suite.

Microsoft To Debut Portable PC Screenby ReutersMicrosoft Corp. said Monday that display maker ViewSonic Corp. will start selling a portable flat-panel screen that can be taken off the desk and used to operate a computer via a wireless link.

Dum Divergence Targeting Tablet PCsby Vin Crosbie, E-Media TidbitsIf you want to read about a dumb idea resulting from lack of coordination by sectors of the publishing industry, then this is your lucky day.

Wedding Saved By Apple's iTunesby Greg Gazin, CanoeWhen I left for the coast not long ago to attend a wedding, the last thing I thought of was that my Macintosh iBook was going to be part of the wedding party.

iPods Go Wherever Their Owners Doby Leander Kahney, Wired NewsThe people who have posted more than 550 photos on the iPods Around the World gallery, part of the iPodLounge website, take theirs almost everywhere they go, from exotic travel destinations to their own backyards.

Macromedia To Sell Light-Duty Web Toolby David Becker, CNET News.comAfter years of targeting professional Web developers and designers, Macromedia has a new type of customer in mind for its latest product—you.

Final Cut Pro Helps India Tackle AIDSby AppleIndiaís first reality TV show — edited entirely on Apple technology and produced and funded by the BBC — is succeeding in combatting the growing problem of HIV and AIDS among the countryís young people.

Opinion

Review

EyeTVby Kirk Hiner, Applelinks.comYou can keep all of your fancy pausing and skipping and technological chicanery, I just want to be able to watch TV while I work. EyeTV provides that ability, so I'm good.

Sidetrack

USING iSYNC WITHOUT .MAC : Jeremy Beker is trying to figure out how to use iSync without a .Mac subscription.

TIME TO DO THE FLIP : Just when we think we have solved the Y2K problem, here's the N2S problem.

LOUSY WINDOWS : Windows XP is supposed to be this stable operating system, just like Mac OS X. Well, it is true to a certain extend — I haven't seen the blue screen of death for a while. But, now, my Windows machine has this little sympton of not being able to force quit any applications. Which makes for a pretty useless operating system that doesn't crash when it is Explorer that crashes...

Wintel

New Faces For PCsby Russell Kay, InfoWorldIt's unlikely that businesses will rush to junk their laptops and buy new tablet PCs, especially in the current economy. But when normal replacement time comes around, we expect the tablet PC to gain a lot of converts.

Microsoft Extends Hands On Low-Cost PDAsby Richard Shim, CNET News.comMicrosoft and Samsung on Monday announced they have teamed up to develop a design for low-cost handhelds, a market dominated by rival Palm.

Fighting Microsoft The Open-Source Wayby Erick Schonfeld, Business 2.0Apple, IBM, and Sun have opened up their software code to the public in their battle against Redmond. It just might work.

Q&A With Adobe's Susan Prescottby Andrew Shalat, MacworldMacworld recently spoke to Susan Prescott, Adobe's vice president of cross-media publishing, about her company's efforts to attract new users to InDesign, XML support in the page-layout application, and Adobe's network-publishing strategy.

Xerox Settles, Apple Awaitsby MacUserXerox is the latest company to settle a dispute over a printing technology patent held by Pitney Bowes.

Opinion

The Friendly TiBook - iBook Rivalryby Derrick Story, O'Reilly NetworkI'm sure to the eyes of uninformed visitors who surf the Apple Store, the iBooks are the "entry level" notebooks and the Titanium PowerBooks are for pros. Ha! Nothing could be farther from the truth.

Review

Speakable Web Servicesby Jon Udell, O'Reilly NetworkApple has done a marvelous job with the recognition and control systems, and now that you can script the Internet so easily in OS X, it's straightforward to build useful voice-driven commands that invoke external as well as local services.

Sidetrack

A MATTER OF TASTE? : Somehow, Mac Net Journal looks better when the author ditches Radio Userland and moved on to Tinderbox. It is looking cleaner and friendier.

Userland has always been a company that doesn't care much about the desktop user interface. Its Mac applications doesn't look like Mac applications, while its Windows applications doesn't look like Windows applications.

Wintel

Can Tablets Cure PC Industry?by Walter S. Mossberg, Wall Street JournalSo, if you pine to take digital notes at meetings, or do a lot of on-screen reading of long documents and don't mind spending an extra $250 or so, the Tablet PC may be for you. For everyone else, I'd advise waiting until these things get better.

MS: Still A Smartphone Player?by Elisa Batista, Wired NewsShortly after one of Microsoft's key partners unceremoniously dumped its software for one made by Nokia, the company said it remains a player in the combination cell-phone and PDA smartphone market.

News

Shrine: Little iMacs Everywhereby Leander Kahney, Wired NewsWhen he came to America, a Brazilian-born photographer struggled to build a successful imaging business. Now he's turned his studio into a pious homage to the technology that helped him hit it big: Macs.

Shooting From The Hipby Joseph Gallivan, Portland TribuneIf moviemaking is still the American lingua franca, then slang is definitely in.

Review

These Two Desktops Contain One-Of-A-Kind Featuresby Dwight Silverman, Houston ChronicleWhile the price on this may seem a little steep, particularly with the monitor added, it's actually an excellent buy considering the amount of power you get from the dual processors.

Stuffit Deluxe 7.0.1by Gary Coyne, Applelinks.comMagic Menu should have been fixed for X.2 as a repair, not as a paid update. Unless you need the Magic Menu and unless you are willing to risk the possible destruction of application package names being truncated, there is little need to upgrade.

Wintel

It's Official: No Longhorn Server On Tapby Mary Jo Foley, eWeekMicrosoft has decided to skip a Windows server release to coincide with the Longhorn client and instead jump directly to Blackcomb, company officials confirmed Friday.

Xbox Shakeup Signals Uncertaintyby ReutersThe head of Microsoft's Xbox business in Japan will step down and move to the U.S. headquarters, marking uncertainty over the fate of the company's already-weak Japanese game operations.

Dell Makes A Wireless Connectionby John G. Spooner, CNET News.comDell will include the 802.11b and 802.11a wireless formats as standard features in all of its new Latitude notebooks as it releases new versions throughout the year.

Microsoft Picks Compliance Committeeby Joe Wilcox, CNET News.comMicrosoft said Friday it has established a compliance committee to enforce an antitrust remedy issued a week ago by a federal judge.

Friday, November 8, 2002

Top Stories

MS 'Preparing .Net For X'by Paul Krill, Macworld UKIt appears that Microsoft is preparing the ground to bring .Net to the Mac.

Hey Mac, Can You Burn A DVD?by Paul Boutin, Wired NewsJust because Apple is making a DVD burner available with its new high-end PowerBook doesn't mean you'll be able to make illegal copies of Hollywood movies.

News

SuperDrive Firmware Updatedby Macworld UKFirmware Update 1.0 addresses an incompatibility with the recently introduced 4x DVD-R and 2x DVD-RW media, and the 2x SuperDrive in the Power Mac G4. These incompatibilities can damage the SuperDrive in extreme cases.

Wintel

Microsoft To Offer Peek At New Toolsby Mike Ricciuti, CNET News.comMicrosoft Chairman Bill Gates will offer a glimpse Friday of future versions of the companyís Visual Studio.Net development tools bundle.

Magazines Plan Tablet PC Editionsby Stefanie Olsen, ZDNetSix major magazine publishers, including Forbes and the New Yorker, plan to don a new image for tablet PCs, creating digital facsimiles of their periodicals and pushing the fold on Web advertising.

Top Stories

Mac Product Reviews: Where's The Trust?by Gene Steinberg, Mac Night OwlBoth print magazines and Web sites will often subject a product to some sort of lab test, but it's not an absolute science, and the choices made in figuring out what to test and how can influence the outcome.

Should Small Business Go Mac?by Teri Robinson, EcommerceTimesDespite Apple's solid moves into the corporate environment, the company still must convince buyers that it can play hardball in the enterprise and be a formidable challenger to other proven operating systems, including Windows.

Opinion

Bluetooth's Teething Problemsby Om Malik, Red HerringMicrosoft and Apple can add a bite to the fledgling Bluetooth technology in North America. But even then, many problems face the new wireless technology.

Trying Mac-Like Look To Windowsby Jon Fortt, San Jose Mercury NewsAs I played with this software, it made me realize just how much work Apple put into the interface for OS X.

Wintel

Tablet PC Walks Through The Gatesby Michelle Delio, Wired NewsBill Gates took several sharp jabs at Apple's discontinued but still beloved Newton handheld computer during the Tablet PC launch Thursday.

Microsoft: Back Off Linux Attacksby Scott Ad, ZDNetSome of Microsoft's efforts to disparage open-source software such as Linux have backfired, according to a recent memo by the software maker.

Wednesday, November 6, 2002

Top Stories

Apple Intros 1GHz SuperDrive PowerBooks, New iBooksby Jim Dalrymple, MacCentralThe updated laptops feature faster processors for both products — up to 1GHz for the PowerBook — and a slot-loading SuperDrive for the PowerBook. Apple also made its consumer entry-level iBook available for under $1000.

News

Steve Jobs Named A Chrysler 'Design Champion'by Dennis Sellers, MacCentralThe Chrysler brand is celebrating the achievements of six "Design Champions" — individuals who have "consistently championed seminal works of architecture and design, and significantly influenced the culture of design in America."

Wireless At Homeby Jonathan B. Cox, News & ObserverComputer networks, once found only in the workplace, are moving into kitchens, living rooms and bedrooms across the Triangle and the nation.

Opinion

Review

ThinkFree Steps Into The Frayby David Zeiler, Baltimore SunIs ThinkFree Office for you? If you absolutely need some of Microsoft Officeís more sophisticated features, probably not. But as a low-cost solution for basic Office compatibility, ThinkFree — warts and all — can't be beat.

Using REALbasic 4.5.1 Classicby M Borselli, Low End MacThe novice would have little problem picking up the fundamentals of REALbasic, especially if the many Internet resources are used.

OS X In The Enterpriseby Larry Seltzer, ZDNetThe problem is, that as good as OS X Server may be, it's different from the Linux/Unix, Windows, Netware, and other server OSs enterprises have been buying all these years, so why should they consider it?

Build Your Own Apache Server With Mod_perlby David E. Wheeler, O'Reilly NetworkIf you're like me and plan to do some serious mod_perl-based Web development work on Mac OS X, you'll need to take the following issues into consideration as you begin working with Apple's Apache install.

Apple Xserve: Apple Scores With Able Server Hardware And Softwareby Robert P. Lipschutz and Brian Kenny, PC MagazineThe Xserve is an impressive server with a multitude of potential uses, excellent ease of use, plenty of storage, and a software configuration that allows for an unlimited number of connections-óall at a truly reasonable price.

Wintel

Studies: Few To Use Tablet PCs In 2003by Margaret Kane and John G. Spooner, CNET News.comDespite a showy launch set for Thursday, a new generation of tablet PCs is not likely to make much of a mark in the mainstream notebook market, according to a pair of studies.

Dell Tries Retail In Singaporeby CNET News.comPC maker Dell Computer, which typically sells direct through the Web and telephone, has chosen Singapore as a test bed for its first retail kiosk in Asia-Pacific.

Can Microsoft Sell Tablet PC?by John G. Spooner and Ian Fried, ZDNetMicrosoft is aiming its new operating system for pen-based, "tablet" computing at the mainstream corporate market, but the first buyers are likely to be businesses with specific requirements.

Silicon Valley's Dream Tablet, From Microsoftby John Markoff, New York TimesIn unveiling its new tablet computer system amid much fanfare on Thursday, Microsoft is betting that it can succeed where dozens of Silicon Valley companies, including Apple, have failed.

Microsoft Ruling May Give Private Suits Ammunitionby Stephen Lawson, InfoWorldMicrosoft and attorneys for competitors and consumers suing the software giant on Monday gave differing interpretations of a ruling in a group of private antitrust cases brought against the company.

Shareholders To Microsoft: Pay Outby ReutersUp to now, Microsoft's shareholders have been willing to give up dividends in exchange for a rising share price and stock splits. But with the share price down by more than 15 percent so far this year, some are calling for better returns in the form of dividends.

Tuesday, November 5, 2002

Top Stories

BECTA, BFI Report Praises Appleby Macworld UK"Evidence from the pilot shows that the integration of DV into teaching and learning has the potential to enhance learning across the curriculum."

Software As A Service Alive And Wellby Tim O'Reilly, O'Reilly NetworkSoftware vendors, don't try to turn your software into a subscription product unless you add some new features worth subscribing to.

News

Author Uses iBook, ViaVoice To Pen Sports Bioby Dennis Sellers, MacCentralTwo years ago author Steve Moore started a writing collaboration with ABC Radio sports anchor, Johnny Holliday. The result was "Johnny Holliday: From Rock to Jock," a new book written entirely using an iBook and IBM's ViaVoice.

Breaking Into The Business: An Interview With Michael Matasby Derrick Story, O'Reilly NetworkMeet Michael Matas. He's the graphic designer who helped Dan Wood create the great look for Watson and who's now designing for the Omni Group, as well as creating graphics and icons for other Mac OS X software developers.

Review

Doing Three People's Work With One Macby Derek K. Miller, TidBITSI would attend sessions [in a conference], take notes and photographs, write and edit articles, and lay out three four-page issues, distributed overnight to the hundreds of physicians attending, with highlights of the previous day and pointers for the new one.

Using AppleScript Studio To Improve Illustratorby Barbara Gibson, Apple"You donít have to have a technical background to do AppleScript or AppleScript Studio. Like a lot of things Apple does, Apple is making more powerful tools more accessible to more people."

Sidetrack

AN APPLE A DAY : Quicktiming.org is an organization of QuickTime developers, enthusiasts and evangelists. Membership is free and open to anyone interested in learning more about or doing more with QuickTime.

MONSTER'S PROFIT : Pixar, Steve's other company, reported profits rose more than 600 percent in the third quarter.

Dell Handhelds Set For Comdexby Richard Shim, ZDNetDell Computer is looking to put the squeeze on handheld makers with the introduction this month of two of its own handhelds.

WordPerfect's Spread Isn't Saving Corelby David Becker, ZDNetAnalysts say those high-profile deals are ultimately unlikely to help Corel turn around a growing string of losses that have depressed the Canadian company's stock to the point where it now trades below cash value.

Microsoft's U.S. Settlement Won't Clear Path In Europeby Paul Meller, New York Times"Our case is quite different from a factual point of view to the case in the United States," said Amelia Torres, the commission's spokeswoman on competition matters. She added, "We also have our own rules to uphold."

Monday, November 4, 2002

Top Stories

New Stores Make Fast Mac Friendsby Leander Kahney, Wired NewsCrowds always line up at Apple Store grand openings — including a contingent of Macintosh fans who travel cross-country to attend every one so they can bond with like minds.

News

.Mac Woes Continue With Account Deactivationsby MacNNApple continues to struggle with its .Mac subscription services as dozens of readers report temporary, but inconsistent outages over the weekend, quadruple billing for a single .Mac subscription and unexpected account deactivations for paid account holders as of November 1st.

Fink Named Sourceforge Project Of The Monthby Peter Cohen, MacCentralThe Fink project purports to "bring the full world of Unix Open Source software to Darwin and Mac OS X." Folks involved with the Fink project modify Unix software to compile and run on Mac OS X and make it available for distribution.

Impressons On Laptops: A Great Tool For Schoolsby Tess Nachelewicz, Press HeraldNow that the state's 17,000 seventh-graders actually have the laptops in their hands, educators are seeing another benefit: Students seem more eager to learn.

All Aboard! (But No PCs Allowed)by Leander Kahney, Wired NewsMost weekends, multimillionaire tech executive Doug Humphrey takes to the seas in his ex-British Royal Navy patrol ship. As a security measure, the only computers he uses — or allows — on board are Macs.

Opinion

New Laptop Crop For Apple?by Matthew Rothenberg, ExtremeTechThe evergreen Mac grapevine is flowing again, as Apple-centric sites and discussion boards across the Web sound off on rumors of new laptops on tap for this week.

Review

HP's Color-Laser Printer Offers Divine Indulgenceby Simson L. Garfinkel, Seattle TimesThe installer didn't work for the network-based printer, but I was able to manually add it using Apple's Print Center utility. Once added, all my Mac could do was print.

Wintel

Microsoft Shares Jump On Settlement Nodby ReutersShares of Microsoft surged Monday as investors grabbed shares after the company won a settlement of U.S. antitrust charges that avoided tough remedies demanded by nine states.

Many Consumers Discount Rulingby P.J. Huffstutter and David Colker, Los Angeles TimesThe antitrust battle has failed to resonate for computer users as they have seen innovation, competition thriving in the industry.

Microsoft's New Set Of Hurdlesby Steve Lohr, New York TimesWhile Microsoft has squelched the competitive challenge posed by Internet browsing software, the "Internet threat" that so worried it in the 1990's is still alive and well, though in a very different form.

New Outlook To Give Spammers The Bootby Joe Wilcox, CNET News.comMicrosoft is taking spam fighting more seriously in the next version of its widely used Outlook e-mail and contact-management software.

MS Job Ad Seeks Evangelist To 'Demolish Competition'by John Lettice, The RegisterThe kind and gentle convicted monopolist is now seeking a Developer Evangelist who can: "Demolish competition by knowing everything they do and thwarting their every move in the relevant spaces."

MS Rivals Vow More Battlesby Wired NewsMicrosoft's rivals said they would seek tighter limits on the world's largest software company after a federal judge approved most of its antitrust settlement with the Justice Department.

Dell Selling PCs At Costcoby Michael Kanellos, CNET News.comPC giant Dell has been expanding its sales by appearing on shopping channels and at kiosks in malls—and now it's going to the discount chains.

Life With Microsoft Still Stifling For Rivalsby John Markoff, New York TimesLiving with Microsoft has increasingly meant staying away from markets that the company controls as a result of its desktop computer software monopoly and looking for niches that are not likely to attract Microsoft's attention.

Sidetrack

Wintel

For Microsoft, Ruling Will Sting But Not Really Hurtby Steve Lohr, New York TimesMore than four years later, little has changed. And there is little in yesterday's ruling on sanctions in the case by Judge Colleen Kollar-Kotelly that will slow down the big software maker.

Money Talks, Microsoft Walksby Scott Rosenberg, SalonYesterday and today, Microsoft has had the power. The court's decision means the company will have it tomorrow, too. If that's in the public interest, then I guess Microsoft 'R' Us.

Microsoft: Freedom To Dominateby Dan Gillmor, San Jose Mercury NewsCompetition took a hit on Friday. So did the usefulness of antitrust law. And so did innovation, which is the worst loss of all.

Microsoft Tunes Windows Media Softwareby Matt Berger, InfoWorldMicrosoft Friday will release a near-final version of its Windows Media Player 9 software and announce the availability of a new version of its digital home-movie-making application, which uses the latest Windows Media Video file format.

Will The Tablet PC Be A Write-Off?by Sumner Lemon, InfoWorldThe only real quesiton that remains is whether Gates' prediction will come true, or if the Tablet PC will go down in history as another unsuccessful attempt by the Redmond-based software company to drag pen-based computing from its comfortable home in niche vertical markets.

Rivals Come Up Short In Decisionby Declan McCullagh, CNET News.comU.S. District Court Judge Colleen Kollar-Kotelly said Friday that she rejected harsh antitrust punishments for Microsoft because they would unfairly benefit its competitors.

Is Microsoft Losing Ground To Linux?by Robert Lemos, CNET News.comOpen-source software gave Microsoft a one-two punch this week, with the European Union and an African nonprofit educational organization showing preference for Linux systems.

The Tablet PC: It Rocksby Michelle Delio, Wired NewsMight as well pawn off the old PC now. Tablet PCs are coming and suddenly even the coolest little laptop looks so 20th century.

Online, The Dead Do Tell Talesby Glen Helfand, Wired NewsMorticians can thank the popularity of HBO's Six Feet Under for giving their industry a quirky TV profile, but consumer technology is also redefining the once-staid business by adding a whole new "product" line — the digital memorial.

Opinion

The Point Not Takenby Timothy R. Butler, Open For BusinessNo matter how often it has been said, it seems that many GNU/Linux and Macintosh users refuse to see the obvious.

Review

It's Everything I Need And Moreby Bernard Quinn, Low End MacMy iBook does everything I need it to and more. It looks great, and I'm having fun using a computer for the first time in years.

Sidetrack

WHERE RUMORS COME FROM : John K Fisher speculates on Slashdot why Apple is putting out a document listing CSS bugs in Microsoft's Internet Explorer...

When you're trying to convince MS users that they can use Mac versions of programs they are used to, why point out serious flaws in one of the biggies? Unless, of course, you have something better you're planning to push...

Microsoft Renews Video Editing Pushby ReutersMicrosoft will add a video-editing feature to its Windows XP operating system with a new program that automates and simplifies home movie making, the world's largest software maker said on Friday.